It’s beginning to look a lot like sailing season again… the snow is melting, geese are doing their thing on the docks, boats are still afloat, and the sun is shining. Lots of news in this Valentine’s Day Edition. Just a personal thought…my wife is allergic to chocolate and the smell of roses…so do I get off easy on Valentines Day? Noooo…unfortunately, she’s not allergic to diamonds.

Let me start off by including a letter from Bob Moore to all members…for those of you who don’t know, his wife has dementia and he has become a full time caregiver. As a result, Bob is retiring from actively being the race director so he and his family can devote their time to Jean. Let’s keep both of them in our thoughts and prayers. Here is Bob’s letter:

To all the racers of the LPOYC,

It has been my honor and privilege to serve you by running the sail boat races for the past eleven years. You’ll never know just how much I enjoyed making sure the starts and finishes were done properly for you. The sight of your boats out on the lake was always a pleasure to me. I loved every minute of it from the time I walked onto the committee boat until I walked off. You are one class act and a great bunch of people who come together as Duane put it: “beer can racing, not the America’s Cup.”

As Ed Simpson knows, my life changed during the Commodore’s Cup Regatta this past October. I had hoped to do another year, but life got in the way. Jean (my wife of 58+ years) has dementia and some form of Parkinson’s disease. During the Commodore’s Cup, it was overwhelming for her to stay home alone. I am now a 24-7 caregiver. Jean, our daughters, and I have made the decision to keep her in our home where I can care for her.

Will I miss the racing and the people doing it? That’s a given for sure. Our outside sitting area looks right across the bay from the start line off of Gary’s dock and I’ll be there most race days and evenings observing the starts and finishes. I loved it all and you all, of course some more than others. I wish you all well and if you’re ever in the neighborhood, stop in. There’s always cold beer in the fridge or an available glass of wine.

Sincerely,

Bob Moore – Retired Race Committee

That being said, we are looking for someone(s) to take over the duties of Race Director, and are looking both inside and outside the club. The duties involve running the races (hoisting flags, starting and logging the finishers for both Sunday and Wednesday night races) I will be doing spring series and the Goat Float as a transition, and hopefully we will find someone(s) who can take over on a more permanent basis. Oh, and this is a paid position- based on the number of racers who participate in any given race, plus you get the privilege of running the committee boat! If you are interested, or know of someone who likes sailing and would be interested, please let Steve Dahlstrom, Mike Gridley, Barb Sinnott or me know. We are also going to put a notice in the Bayview ByLines if someone locally wants to help out. We are also looking for someone who can be an “unofficial” photographer for the club…

And now, the rest of the news-

February 18th – Bruce Robertson, from Sandpoint Sailing Assn, is doing a seminar on boat maintenance from 9-1 at the Sandpoint Community Center on 1st Street in Sandpoint. He has lots of pointers for routine and some specialized boat maintenance and, especially for the new sailors, this is a valuable class.

Mid March– Dave Spencer, from San Juan Charters is going to return to do another program about cruising…it was well attended last year and we coupled it with a pot luck and some classes on other subjects. Don Yager has volunteered to do a class on furlers and maybe we can talk Kurt Campbell into sharing some tales about his cruising in the Virgin Islands over the winter…We are still working out the details, but we do know it will be at the Bayview Community Center on either the third or fourth Saturday in March…and will most likely run from about 10 till 2…I will send out details as soon as they are finalized.

Some new rules will be coming into play for racing this season…David Cohen will be leading a class on the new rules and reintroducing some of the old ones for those of us who have short memories. Class will be April 23rd at the Bitter End clubhouse starting at 8:30 in the morning, followed by the first race of the spring season. We are also going to have some classes on race starts (for all the new sailors who may be intimidated by the starts or oldies who need practice) on Saturday, June 10th…plan on several practice starts and learning how to get off on the right tack (‘scuse me, starboard tack).

Something new this year- we are setting up a registry for those sailors who need crew, or for those crew who need sailors…just a way to get folks together to go out and sail or race. The address for the registry is LPOYC-Crew@googlegroups.com. We are also working on being able to post on another site- www.gosailingapp.com where you can log in and keep up with club activities, including crew needs.

Racing and Cruising calendars are being finalized ….I will send out a separate email message with the details, rules changes, etc.…I can tell you that we have lots of good things cooked up for the upcoming season on both sides of the house (or boat). We will have some night cruising on Full Moons, a night race, back to ButtonHook, and some other interesting events. Stay Tuned!

Goat Float is coming up sooner than you think…we are looking for sponsors and volunteers to help make this annual regatta a success…contact Steve Dahlstrom twotacky1@aol.com to volunteer or let us know about prospective sponsors.

Reminder, club dues are due at the end of March for members, and if you want to participate in the Spring Series racing, you need to be paid up. You can either pay at any of the events, or fill out the attached membership renewal/ application and send it to Cam Girton, our esteemed Treasurer and we will get you set up.

For those who want membership cards (like traveling boats or just travelers), let me know and I’ll get them printed as soon as I have enough for a batch (need at least 20). They will be ready at the March cruising meeting (if I have names by then) or before the first race. If you live out of the area and want a card, please include your “away address” and I’ll send it out.

WEBSITE:

If you have pictures you would like to share or news that you wish to have posted, get the information to Brett Sullivan, our intrepid webmaster in chief…email to: bretts@me.com or get them to me and I will pass them on. Race and Cruising schedules will be posted after the OGM on the 16th.

BURGEE’s:

If you need a club burgee, get a hold of me. Burgees are $25.00. I have burgees for two members who paid for them last season but haven’t let me know how to get them to you……

And as always, if you have some news to share with the other members of the club, drop me a line …lpoyced@aol.com and please put LPOYC in the subject line.

More news will be posted on the site…www.lpoyc.org, so check it out.

May Neptune and Aeolis grant you fair winds and calm seas for your journeys.